You're The One That I Want
by TCGA
Summary: After an unfortunate incident puts him in the spotlight, Barry has to take action on something that could change his relationship with Caitlin for good or bad. [Halloween Prompt] [One-Shot].


Barry sped in front of Ralph's new home, double checking the address on his phone.

Considering that his friend had been living in a PI office for years and a now had recently inherited a ridiculous amount of money from an uncle he had never met, Barry had expected to find a mansion in that quiet neighborhood. However, the closest House Warming / Halloween party was clearly happening in the humble, two floor home he was looking at, with people in costumes chatting and drinking in the front yard.

Barry suddenly felt tempted to go back to his small, dark apartment and watch a movie. Considering some recent events, he wasn't in the mood to party, but he had promised Ralph that he would be there. The whole team had.

Taking a deep breath, he crossed the front yard and stepped into the house.

It only took one quick scan at the big living room to know that he didn't know anyone in that crowd. He also noticed that, just like him, most of the guests hadn't put that much effort into their costumes. He had just grabbed a leather jacket and a pair of boots from the bottom of his closet and delayed a haircut to pull off this Danny Zukko look, and hoped to look as good as he had planned.

Even in that packed room, it was easy for him to recognize one familiar face. One that made him feel a rush of blood in his veins. The person he actually wanted to see that night.

"Cait!" he exclaimed, waving in her direction before she could get lost in the crowd again.

"Oh, thank God," he saw her mutter, as she strode across the room to get to him.

Once Caitlin reached his side, he leaned down to talk to her ear. "Who are all these people?"

"I don't know," she replied, looking around. "I have been walking around for fifteen minutes, but Cisco and Ralph are not answering my calls."

Caitlin then looked down at Barry's clothes, raising her eyebrows.

"Yo-you are…" she stammered, waiting for him to finish the sentence.

"Danny," Barry confirmed, with a dubious smirk. His eyes then diverted to her own black clothes, opening wide in realization. "Oh! And you are…"

"Yeah."

It wasn't that obvious at first sight, since Caitlin was sporting her usual straight hair that night, but Barry still felt like an idiot for not recognizing her Sandy costume sooner. Her eyes met the ground momentarily, which made him unable to hold back a flustered face any longer. Before that party, he had promised himself to act as normal as possible around Caitlin. That, of course, without even imagining that this innocent coincidence would come to enhance the already palpable tension between them. He just wanted to get her attention, not force a romantic concept on her or make her think he had followed her and did this on purpose.

Two days ago, Barry had fractured his skull in battle. He had already started healing by the time Cisco breached him back to the lab, but Caitlin, surprisingly fast, caught him by the shoulders before he could enter the cortex and escorted him to the med bay.

"I feel good," he insisted, sitting on the side of the table. "I just need an aspirin."

"It's cute that, after so many years, you still think you have a say on that," she answered, sassily. She had already cleaned up him up and now was holding the back of his head with her palm, using her powers to relieve the bump on that area. Barry groaned in protest. "Look at me," she ordered, cheekily, pulling out a penlight from her lab coat to examine his eyes.

This wasn't so bad, though. Barry would mask it as teasing, but he treasured any moment alone with her and any examination that gave him an excuse to look at her beautiful face from a minimal distance. He couldn't name the exact moment he had started falling for Caitlin, because he couldn't remember how he felt about her before that. Things like the little smirk that would form on his lips every time she was bossy, the throbbing of his heart when she laid her hands on him, professionally but tenderly, and the way his eyes always seemed to follow her across the room had never felt as something new. These feelings might have not been that intense once, but they had definitely been there.

 _It's time_ , he thought, readying himself to finally ask her. He had been mustering up the courage that whole day. That whole week, honestly. There was no need to spook her with some elaborated speech, he would simply throw a casual invitation, hoping that she would take the hint.

"Do you have anything to do tonight?" he asked her, so fast that the invitation sounded like one long word.

"Watch some knitting tutorials," she answered, opening one of her drawers and pulling out a bandage roll. Barry grimaced. "That means no," Caitlin clarified, giggling. "Why?"

Barry snickered. "Would you like to have dinner with me?"

Caitlin smiled at him as she rolled a piece of bandage around his head. "It's a good idea. We never hang out anymore, just you and me."

"Yeah, but that's not…"

Barry had a buzzing in his ears from the panic, and it was making it really hard to concentrate or plan any strategies to help her understand that this was a date.

"That's not what?" Caitlin asked, delicately fixing his hair so the bandage didn't tug at the strands.

"I-I… I mean…" he let out, momentarily distracted by her attentiveness. The amused smile she gave in response didn't help. "I'm inviting you because…"

Barry's phone went off on the side of the table. He reached out for it and opened the text he had just received.

 _Today at 7:00 PM. From: Cisco._

 _Dude, I'm bored down here. Did you ask Caitlin out already? Did she say yes? Did you guys make out? Can I go upstairs now?_

Barry's heart jumped to his throat when he saw Caitlin tearing her gaze away from the screen, exhaling sharply. He locked the phone, knowing that it was too late, which only made him look guiltier.

"Cait…" he tried, but she interrupted him.

"I-I just remembered… that I have to help Cisco with something," she stuttered out, rampantly.

Barry swallowed, his own expression mirroring her distress. "He is having dinner with his mother tonight, are you going?"

Caitlin quickly backtracked. "Did I say Cisco? I meant Ralph!" She snapped her fingers, took off her lab coat and grabbed her purse from the door knob. "Yeah, he asked me to help him to… pick a fence for his new place."

"Why can't Sue help him?"

"Be-because they are… fighting."

"Already? They sounded pretty chummy on the phone like an hour ago."

"I mean, no. The fence is a _surprise_ … for her."

"I didn't know they were that serious."

"They're not bu-but she doesn't want him to… get robbed, you know," she finished, walking backwards.

Barry's eyelids dropped in sadness. He couldn't force her to stay and listen to him, especially when he clearly had nothing good to say. "Okay."

"I'll see you later!"

He watched her awkwardly scurry away, mortified.

"I guess I have to put on my own bandage," he sighed, pulling it off his head to start over.

That's how the two most awkward days of the year had started. Caitlin would act normal around him, answer his questions and take requests but, if they were left alone or sitting at the same station in the cortex, she would face the other way or find an excuse to leave the room. This made him triple sad after she had seemed so excited to spend time just with him for a change. Although that had been his main reason to attend this party, to approach her without any superhero duty getting in the way, he had been close to bailing and leaving things as they were, hoping that they would return to normal one day.

"I… I just pulled some old clothes out my closet," Caitlin randomly commented, making an unexpected effort. Barry beamed at her, a little too relieved. "I… I mean, Killer Frost used to wear this top under our old suit and the leather pants still fit, so…"

"So, your top is technically underwear?" Barry teased her. He didn't need to see Caitlin's frown to realize he had gone too far. "I-I mean…"

Caitlin looked down at her own cleavage. "It's too slutty, isn't it?" she asked, casually.

"No, no." He laughed as she put on the leather jacket she had under her arm. Things were going well so far. "You look amazing," he reassured her, earning a quick smirk from her. "And hey, at least you're wearing clothes," he added, suddenly noticing another familiar face in the distance.

Ralph, who had already seen them, started approached them in a… shower costume. Yes, he was wearing a bath hat and a plastic curtain around his body, supported by metallic piece that was resting on his bare shoulders, so you could only see his head and bare feet.

"Look at you lovebirds in couple costumes!" their friend hollered, doing a little dance inside the shower curtain. He then turned to a wide-eyed Barry and patted him on the shoulder. "I told you things would work out!"

" _Ralph_ ," Barry groaned in anger, pursing his lips. He turned to Caitlin, who looked like she wanted to turn into an ice cube and melt away. "Cait, I'm…"

"Uhm, I'm gonna grab a drink," Caitlin suddenly decided, heading for the exit.

A clueless Ralph took a hand out of the curtain and pointed in the opposite direction. "Caitlin, you know the kitchen is that way."

"Right." She turned around and started walking in that direction. "Thanks."

Barry sighed in frustration. "Cait, wait…"

He tried to reach for her hand, but he was blocked by two guys who were passing by.

"So… you guys haven't talked about it yet," Ralph realized, scratching his chin.

"Oh, is it that obvious?!" Barry deadpanned, raising his arm and then putting it down, realizing that it was pointless to get his fist trapped in Ralph's skin in front of forty witnesses. "I guess she is trying to let me down easy," he then commented, lowly.

"What do you mean?"

"She's subtly showing me she's not interested. This is the first time we speak since she saw that damn text and ran away. You know, when she said she would help you pick a fence…"

"Oh, yeah, she did! She was lovely. Can you believe that after we were done with that, she insisted on coming the next day to help with…? Wait." Ralph stopped, rolling his eyes in exaggerated disappointment. "She didn't want to hang out with me, she was…"

"… avoiding me, yeah."

"Ouch. I'm sorry, Rookie."

Barry just shrugged, frantically wondering how he was going to fix this.

"Hey, come on. Light up," Ralph said then, wrapping an arm around Barry's shoulders. "I'll tell you what: take her upstairs, to my lounge. You guys can lock the door and talk in private."

"Please tell me you're wearing clothes under your costume," Barry said, unsettled by Ralph's proximity.

Ralph winked. "Board shorts."

"Phew."

The detective then opened the shower curtain and pulled a set of keys out of his pocket.

"Here," he said, throwing them at Barry, who caught them in the air. "Take anything you want from the bar."

"Thanks, man," Barry sighed, patting him on the shoulder. "I'll look for her. If you see Cisco, send him upstairs, please."

"He's not coming. Apparently, that speech for Caitlin you rehearsed with us inspired him. He's on his way to get Cynthia."

"What? And you didn't stop him?"

"He kind of… blasted me across the room and my legs got tangled in my arms." Ralph drew circles with his hands, trying to describe how. "I couldn't do anything."

Barry facepalmed. "We couldn't protect him for too long. He'll probably stop by later, crying or something... If he does, send him upstairs."

"Gotcha."

"And tell Sue that I said hi."

"Oh, she is right there!"

Ralph turned his head to his left and waved, getting attention from someone inside a rubber duck costume in the other side of the room.

"Is that Sue?" Barry snorted, noticing her lifting her wing to wave back.

"Yeah, I better get going. I don't think she can see very well in that thing," Ralph said, smiling at his girlfriend. "Good luck, Barry."

Barry nodded gratefully and started walking around, hoping that Caitlin hadn't left. Since she had said she would be in the kitchen, that was the last place he tried, doing his best not to slip on the liquor spilled on the floor or bump into the couples making out.

Luckily, the kitchen had a back door that seemed to connect to another hallway. He impatiently sped through the door and spotted Caitlin sitting on the first step of stairs.

"Hey," Barry said softly, stopping abruptly, making her hair fly back.

"Hey," Caitlin said back, fixing the loosen locks behind her ears. "Sorry I ran off. Uhm…" She finally looked up, searching his eyes. "Can we talk?"

Barry sighed theatrically and offered her a hand so she could stand up. "That would be great."

Caitlin accepted his help and, once she was back on her feet, Barry led her upstairs. His feet seemed to weight one more pound with every step he took and his heart was plummeting to the pit of his stomach. Sure, this is what he had been waiting for, but the fact she had requested the talk made him think that he would probably hear something he didn't want to hear.

"Ralph told me we could talk here," he said, using his friend's keys to open the only door at the top of the stairs.

They walked into a pitch-dark room. Leaving the door open to get a little light, Barry approached the wall and felt it up to find a light switch. He did it at first try but, instead of a normal, yellow light, a reddish one turned on… and _Careless Whisper_ started playing in the speakers on the walls.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Barry exclaimed, trying to regulate the switch, but there wasn't a mid-option between off and on. He turned to Caitlin, who was giving him an amused, questioning look. "I swear I had nothing to do with this."

"Welcome to Ralph Dibny's crib," Caitlin chuckled out, walking up to help him with the control panel.

Barry raised an eyebrow at the comment. "Did you know that was there?" he asked, accusingly.

Caitlin turned her head to him, her frosty blue eyes momentarily shining bright. " _She didn't, I did_ ," Frost giggled, in her tilting voice, startling him. " _You should've seen your face, by the way."_

Caitlin shook her head. "Frost, what did we say about peeking?"

Frost lit up Caitlin's eyes again. " _Well, your heart rate was spiking a minute ago and I didn't understand why you weren't calling me, but…_ " Her eyes impishly diverted to Barry, who gave her a puzzled look. " _I see it now. Bye, bye_."

Caitlin's body shivered, announcing her return. "Wait! How do we turn this…?" she intended to ask her alter ego. "… off. She's gone."

Barry's mouth was slightly open. "That will never cease to freak me out," he joked, fascinated.

Caitlin smiled apologetically. "I swear we are alone now. She never jumps out like that. We usually talk in… my head."

"It's okay, she was worried and tried to include me, I guess." Barry was already wondering about Frost's subtle teasing, considering she had access to Caitlin's thoughts, but a more urgent thought popped up. "I think I have asked this question before, but… where does she go when she's not… here?"

"Uhm…" Caitlin trailed off, looking up to see if the closest speaker had any buttons. "The way she explained it to me was with a duplex. She is my downstairs neighbor, who comes to knock on the door when she hears something. But she doesn't know what I do most of the time, you know? I am in… my apartment and she is in hers. It's just when she 'comes over' that she catches up on what has been going on."

"That's good to know," Barry commented, trying not to let his imagination run wild. He had already accepted that, if by any chance things worked between Caitlin and him, they would never be alone. But learning that privacy was actually a possibility made him feel an unexpected sense of relief.

After a few attempts of turning the music off and back on, Caitlin gave up and turned it off.

"I think I saw some candles right… here," she announced, closing the door behind her and pointing her phone's flashlight at the coffee table. She fished out a lighter from her purse and lit the three of them.

Barry looked around the now subtly illuminated room. Two chairs and a couch were pointing at a big TV and the stereo that was probably connected to the light circuit somehow. The bar Ralph had mentioned was right in the corner, and next to it there was a glass door to a balcony.

Caitlin walked up to the bar. "Do you want something to drink?" she asked, standing behind it and crouching down to grab some bottles.

"Sure," Barry accepted, sitting in one of the high chairs attached to the piece of furniture.

He awkwardly watched her back and the top of her head going from one side to the other and heard the tilting of the glass bottles as she searched under the counter.

"Uhm," he trailed off, trying to start the conversation. "I took one of those pills that slow down my metabolism earlier. Let's see if I get buzzed."

Caitlin straightened herself up with a jump. "What?" she stressed, frowning. "Barry!"

"What?"

"I made those as a test! The effect lasts six hours, you can't just randomly take them!" Barry shrunk back as she started waving her hands in anger. "What if there's an emergency right now and you're thrown against a tree? Even hitting your head could kill you without your rapid healing!"

"There are three metahumans under this roof, Caitlin. I'm sure one of you can handle a petty robbery," Barry said, nonchalantly.

"Yeah, right, because you just let us handle things on our own." She rolled her eyes and then fixed them on him, frustrated. "Why can't you just take care of yourself?"

"Because you would leave me," he joked, with a jump of his brows.

Her expression softened. "I would never do that."

Barry's lips turned upwards, his heart beating a notch faster. Usually, he was able to act normal at the lab, look at Caitlin and keep it together, seeing her as his old friend and teammate. Just Caitlin. But it was moments like these when he would get lost in her brown eyes, enjoying the fact she always took his jokes too seriously. However, even when he was driving her crazy, she would never fail to show him that anything she said was out of concern.

"Are you gonna show off your former bartender skills?" Barry wondered, trying to end the discussion.

"I wish… but there's nothing here to mix the alcohol with. Not even soda," she said, leaning up and leaving a bottle of tequila on the counter. "Shots?"

Barry smirked. "Shots."

Caitlin pulled two shot glasses from the top shelf and filled them.

"Cheers," she said, pushing one of the drinks to him and raising her own.

"Cheers," Barry chuckled out, confidently taking the shot into his mouth.

The alcohol hit him like a brick. He held his tongue back, in an effort not to make a face, and Caitlin's face became blurry as he swallowed.

"So, they work," she observed, considerably less affected.

"They do," he coughed, giving up his attempt to look tough. "Wow, I had completely forgotten how that felt."

"Do you feel good, though?"

"Yeah. And, if I don't, I have nothing to worry about." She tilted her head questioningly, and he offered her a little, buzzed smile. "I'm with you."

Caitlin bit her lip shyly, her gaze lost somewhere behind him. For some reason, Barry started imagining all the parts of her brain that would have lightened up, depending on what she was thinking (or feeling) in that moment. Would it be the frontal lobe, trying to decide what words to push out of her mouth? Would it be the limbic system, trying to clarify her feelings? Both?

Whatever was going on, the looks and the silence had already prolonged for too long.

Barry cleared his throat.

"Caitlin, I… about that text…" he started.

"What text?" Caitlin gasped, suddenly startled.

He sighed expressively. "Come on. I know you read Cisco's text and… I don't want things to be weird between us."

"Why would they be weird?"

"Because… you know…"

"No, I don't."

"I mean, you saw it…"

"But I _still_ don't know." Caitlin interrupted him, emphatically. "Because _you_ haven't told me what the text is really about."

"Oh."

Barry chuckled as she raised her eyebrows knowingly. He had been so nervous around her that it never occurred to him that she was just expecting some common courtesy.

"Okay… there's not an easy or subtle way to say it," he continued. The knot in his stomach tightened in nervousness, but Caitlin encouraged him with a smirk. "Let's say… I found out why my dates weren't going well."

"Why is that?" Caitlin asked, noticing the long, dramatic pause he had made.

"Because… sometimes I wasn't even five minutes into the date… and I was already thinking about what I would do after."

"What was that?"

"Call you."

Caitlin tucked a lock of her behind her ear, her eyes dropping to her empty shot glass. Barry took that time to think about what else to say. He knew he shouldn't be getting his hopes up but, for some reason, rejection was the least of his concerns in that moment. He just wanted to tell her everything, and the fact she was the one who offered him the opportunity to do so, trying to make up for the two days she had spent unintentionally hurting him, made him happy to solely have her in his life.

"We've been on the phone a lot lately," Caitlin pointed out, breaking the ice.

"Yeah," Barry agreed, sheepishly. "It just occurred to me that, if I'm already waiting by the phone, whether if I'm deciding if it's the right time to call or expecting a text back… then I shouldn't be trying to meet someone especial…" He felt his features relax as he watched her react, enamored by her still clueless expression. "Because I already have."

Caitlin's breath hitched. "Barry…"

"An hour on the phone with you or going straight to the med bay the next morning. because you're always the first one there… those are the things I've been really looking forward to."

Caitlin didn't turn her eyes away from him this time. They just stared at each other indefinitely, like they did sometimes and, despite the tension that was clearly building, the air still felt light. Silent exchanges had always been their thing and, even when they were both lost for words, they were still communicating.

"Was that the answer you were looking for?" Barry prodded, smirking.

"Yeah," she said. Even in the dim light of the room, Barry could see that she was blushing. "Since I read that text upside down I wasn't sure if…"

"You just genuinely wanted me to explain."

Caitlin rested her elbows on the bar and leaned over it without taking her eyes off him, studying him. "Yeah… and, at the same time, I was afraid of the truth."

Barry held her gaze, heavy breathing. What possible truth was she afraid of, though? That he had feelings? That she had got it all wrong?

"How long?" she asked, seemingly interested.

"I think I had a tiny crush on you when we met," he grinned, words coming out more and more easily each time. No matter what he was saying, his tendency to shamelessly share fears and feelings with Caitlin remained intact. "But my mind was set on someone else. Someone I thought I would spend my life with, but then, you know…" He chuckled. She did know. She had been through the whole thing with him after all. "You realize that life is longer than you expected, and things _can_ change…and, when things end so badly, you also start looking back and wondering…"

He interrupted himself as Caitlin leaned her head forward, a condescending look on her face. "Barry…"

Sensing that he was now closer to being rejected, more words rushed out Barry's mouth. "I tried to fight it, Cait," he interrupted, making it sound as an apology. "I didn't want you think I wasn't serious. But then the guys would catch me daydreaming, or I would stay up all night when you were out on a date, hoping that the dude wasn't a douche, but you weren't that into him." Caitlin snorted, once again providing him a boost of confidence. "And you weren't. You gave up dating quicker than me and we kept having these… moments."

"What do you mean?"

"I don't know… the way you to take care of me in the examination room and crack a joke when you notice me staring, how you're always the first to notice when I am not having a good day and always know what to say, the way you bite your lip to refrain from saying anything when you don't agree with my plans…"

Caitlin covered her face with one hand in embarrassment. "Is it that obvious, uh?"

"Oh, yeah, I can read 'this is a bad idea' like a neon sign on your face."

They both laughed.

"But instead, you tag along or say 'good luck' before I leave and 'great job' when I get back, because you just want me to succeed," Barry finished, with a longing.

"I do," Caitlin confirmed, wholeheartedly. "But you also love proving me wrong."

"No, Cait… I like _impressing you_."

"Well, I'm very impressed with how much we actually communicate."

"Yeah... that's why sometimes I feel that we are both trying to tell each other something, but when things get too intimate we just…"

"Hold back?"

Barry leaned back in surprise. "Yes! Like… like that time a few years ago when we went to karaoke." He made a pause to make sure she remembered the occasion. She swallowed but nodded. "We were kinda going somewhere and I…"

"Chickened out?"

Barry frowned. "I was gonna say 'blew it', but yeah, that too."

Caitlin huffed. "I'm sorry," she sighed, shaking her head. "I don't know why I said that. You weren't that into me, it's totally okay."

Barry's chest hurt at that statement. Although it was true that he wasn't ready to be with her back then, he didn't feel that was the reason and he needed her to know that.

"You had already become important to me," he said. "And we were both hung up on people. No matter who screwed up, I would lose you. I couldn't risk it."

Her eyes softened, and she put a hand over his forearm gratefully.

"I'm sorry for not telling you sooner," Barry proceeded, somberly. If he hadn't lost her back then, he was probably going to lose her now. Or at least things would never be the same. "I didn't even know how to start the conversation. I mean, I could sense a vibe from you, but… what if I was wrong? How do you admit to one of your best friends that you've been thinking and feeling these things? How do you explain to them that things have changed like that?"

Caitlin sighed, watching him with sad, half-lidded eyes. "You don't. It's unspeakable, and you just know you're the one who will get hurt."

For a minute, Barry feared that Caitlin was trying to tell him that he should've kept his mouth shut… but the look she gave him, a mix of shame and guilt, made him think that she knew what he was talking about from experience.

His eyes widened with hope. "Cait…"

Caitlin cleared her throat. "Refill?" she offered, holding the bottle in the air.

He blinked in confusion. "Oh, yeah. Please."

She poured the liquor a little too violently into the glasses and raised hers in front of him. "Cheers."

"Cheers."

Barry felt that third shot hit a little harder, which was probably the reason why he was so chill about his recent love confession and her reaction.

Caitlin got out the bar and approached him from the side, offering him her hand.

"What?" he queried.

She grabbed him by the hands and pulled him off his seat. Once he landed on his feet, she guided him through the already open balcony door.

They stood in front of each other under the starry night. Caitlin grabbed both his hands once again and looked up at him, biting her lip, her hair flying back as a slight summer breeze hit them. Although her lip biting habit tended to be, as he had already mentioned, a disagreement alarm or a cue to ask her how she was doing, in that moment it didn't look like neither of those things. She was, instead, repressing a goofy and yet seductive smile.

"What?" he chuckled out, more insistently.

"We can actually hear the music from here," she answered, tilting her head towards the sound.

"Do you want to go back to the party?"

"No…" She unexpectedly let go of his hands and wrapped her arms around his neck. "I want to be with you."

Barry froze in his position, babbling something unintelligible, his brain trying to process this sudden transition of events. "Cait… what are we…?"

Caitlin sighed, replacing her sassy smirk with a warm one. "I just want to dance, Barry."

"Oh." He cautiously pulled her against him by the waist. "Okay."

With a little help from the ballad that was sounding downstairs, Barry started swaying them from one side to the other.

"How drunk are you?" he asked Caitlin, just in case.

"Not at all," Caitlin said, playing with the ends of his hair, causing shivers to go down his spine.

"Really? Because I remember you as a lightweight, Doctor Snow."

Caitlin huffed. "Barry Allen, do you even know how my abilities work?"

"Right! Your healing."

"It's not like yours. I get drunk slower. I've kind of experimented with wine at home, drinking as much as I could, more than once."

"Why is that?"

"Wondering how to start this conversation."

This time, Barry made sure not to have an obvious reaction to that, although his insides were combusting. It would have been dumb of him to think that Caitlin didn't have feelings for him now, because she would never lead him on like that, but he also wanted to respect her boundaries.

"I like the fence you picked," he commented, leaning his head down, realizing the front yard was too dark to tell. "Well, I can't see it, but I'm sure I would like it."

Just like he had hoped, Caitlin started cracking up.

"I'm so sorry about that," she adorably apologized. She could have asked him to forgive her for something way worse and he wouldn't have been able to stay mad. "I know you need an answer. And I will give it to you. I just need the world to stand still for a second.".

"Do you want me to take you into Flashtime for that?"

"That wouldn't slow down my thoughts." She rested her head on his shoulder. "This does."

Barry closed his own eyes and leaned his face against her forehead. He had not been prepared for this overwhelming, warm intimacy. He didn't know if Caitlin somehow knew how terrified he had been but, judging by the way her hand was rubbing at his chest while the other latched onto his back, she did. She was trying to hold him as close to her as possible, to show him he was welcome.

"Did you change your cologne?" she asked, randomly.

"Yeah," Barry commented, not really expecting her to notice.

"It's funny, you still…" She let her face fall to his neck, making his breath hitch. "Smell like you."

"How is that?"

"I don't know, just… _you_."

Barry smirked and followed her lead, his nose grazing the crook of her neck and going up to her ear shell. "You're not bad yourself."

Caitlin let out a surprised squeal and Barry felt her nails dig into his scalp.

"Caitlin," he giggled, breathing against her ear. "Are you ticklish?"

"No," she answered, unsurely.

He hovered his lips over her earlobe, causing her to jerk back. "Are you sure?"

"It's just that area."

"Interesting."

"You don't want to start a tickle battle with me, Mr. Allen. I know you from head to toe."

Barry felt a sudden excitement thrumming through his body as he processed that statement, and how its context could forever change now. "That's true." He returned to his position, watching her look impossibly beautiful in the moonlight. "Then you know you give me goosebumps."

He grabbed her hand and pressed it against his neck, allowing her to delicately graze her fingers across his pulse point.

"See?" Barry let out, shyly.

Caitlin swallowed. "I'm touching your neck. Goosebumps are a normal reaction," she argued, her index and middle finger moving up to stroke the sensitive skin behind his ear, while her thumb stayed behind, stroking his bone cheek.

Using his speed, Barry smoothly swiped his hand into each one of her pockets, until he found her penlight.

"Why are your pupils so dilated?" he asked, playfully pointing the beam to her face. "Is that normal too?"

"When you have a dummy shining a light into your eyes, yes, it is," Caitlin rationalized, taking the pen from his hand.

Barry nervously laughed, trying to hide his embarrassment. He hadn't thought that one through. "Or maybe you just like me in a leather jacket."

Caitlin snorted and turned off the penlight. "How did you even know I was carrying this?"

"You always do."

"You…"

She cut the sentence and shook her head amusedly, trying not to open her eyes, like she didn't want him to see the current state of her pupils.

"I do like you in a leather jacket," she admitted then, her eyes flickering to his. "And, when I put on this… costume tonight, I was hoping you would bring up that karaoke night."

Barry's mouth dropped open. "Really?"

"Such a pathetic stretch, I know, it's just the closest we've been to…"

"No, Cait, I…" He shook his head, stopping her from saying anything else. "I was also hoping you would take the hint. I just freaked out, thinking I had made you uncomfortable."

"God, it was so long ago…"

"And a lot has happened in 6 years…"

"Timeline changes…"

"Marriages…"

"Alter egos..."

"Future kids…"

"But," Barry let out, lifting his hands from her waist to cup her face. "From now on, I want to focus on the present and… right now, Caitlin Snow, you're the one that I want."

Caitlin leaned back, an open mouthed smile on her face. "How long have you been waiting to say that line?"

"I just came up with it, why?"

"You came up with it? Barry…have you even seen Grease?"

"What? Of course I have seen it, why…? Oh!" he let out, his cheeks flaming. "It's a song from... from the movie," he remembered, nodding along with Caitlin. "It was probably at the back of my head… I'm so stupid…"

But Caitlin was looking up at him with such tenderness that he felt anything but stupid. In fact, he couldn't remember any of his insecurities. His heart was suddenly shielded and safe from the outside world.

"How buzzed are you?" she questioned.

Barry tiredly blinked. "Just a little bit. Why?" he asked.

"Because it's my turn to talk."

Caitlin grabbed both his hands and gave them a light squeeze as she took a few deep breaths, and Barry had to admit that he was enjoying to finally see her a little nervous. Not awkward as they had been for the past few days, just shaky and excited about the emotional rollercoaster they were experiencing.

"Barry you… you've changed my life," she started, in between small giggles. "I have told you before, I always thought I knew how my life would be…but, since I met you, I've done things I never thought I would. Good, bad, amazing ones... " Her tone turned more serious, but not less caring. "The particle accelerator explosion, that was the worst thing that had ever happened to me… and you helped me turn that into what my life is now, a good life, and I'm grateful for each day that I get to save people with you."

Barry pressed his lips together, fighting the emotion trying to burst through his pores. Even though he had boldly decided to act on his feelings for Caitlin and hoped she would reciprocate, a small, dark corner of himself feared that she didn't think he was worth it, mostly because he had a lot to do with some bad things that had happened to her in the past, but… there she was, implying that her life was better because of him, rarely holding him accountable for anything.

He had a lot to catch up to do if he wanted to even aspire to deserve her.

"You gave me purpose… and that's why I gave up dating so quick. Because something inside me has always told me that it should be you and me," Caitlin said quietly, letting go of his hands and reaching out to caress his cheek, his lightning reacting to some left-over ice on her palm, causing his skin to spark under her touch. "I just knew. And no matter how many times I tell myself that everything I do I do it to help you, because you need me, the truth is… I need _you_."

Barry tightened his grip around her waist, pulling her closer and pressing a kiss to the top of her head. "I do need you, though," he let out, emotionally.

Caitlin groaned in protest, tearing herself away from him. "Don't ruin my speech."

"I do."

Her eyes diverted to his lip. "Shush."

"No."

"I need you more."

He defiantly leaned forward, just enough for his breath to hit her face. "You think? I wouldn't last _a week_ without you."

"Barry, let me talk…"

"It's true."

"Or I'll shut you up."

"Is that so?"

She leaned up just one millimeter, her parted lips now hovering over his, her eyes half closed. "Yeah."

Barry reached out to grab the back of her neck, dipping his hand in her hair. "I dare you."

"Listen. I really, really like you and…"

"I like you more…"

"Would you shut up already?"

"Make me."

She unexpectedly pushed her lips forward and prisoned his upper one, taking him by surprise. He breathily reciprocated, holding her face with both hands, as her arms wrapped tightly around his back. Surprisingly, the eager brushing of their lips didn't break their connection. In fact, they were so in synch that breathing didn't feel like a necessity until they were both really winded.

Caitlin was the first one to break the kiss, tiptoeing to press her forehead against his affectionately.

"I kissed you," she whispered, stunned.

"You did," Barry agreed, almost inaudibly, his heart feeling too small to keep up with his raging blood pressure.

"No, I mean, it's _really_ you…"

Barry blinked in confusion, his eyelashes brushing against Caitlin's. "What?"

"I'll tell you that later. It's a funny story, actually. I…."

But Barry had already imprisoned her lips again, his hands traveling down her curves, enticing breathy moans to escape her mouth. She then pulled him by his shirt, dragging him back inside the lounge and towards the couch. Noticing her intentions, Barry crouched down to pick her up, turned around and sat on the couch, with her straddling him. Their lips then locked more boldly, with teeth clashing and tongues intertwining.

"Only God knows what has happened in this couch," Caitlin randomly whispered, as Barry freed her lips to start kissing down her neck.

"We don't have to do anything," he clarified, sweetly nibbling at her earlobe. "We can just…"

"Make out."

"Yeah." Barry watched her chest heaving and her hands trying to ease his jacket off his shoulders, her frown indicating that wasn't the offer she wanted to hear. "Or I could get us out of here."

"That's better."

Right when Barry was about to oblige, something similar to a thunder sounded inside the room and a familiar blue light flashed behind Caitlin.

"Oh, my God, did we just breach into Hormone Land?" Cisco complained, coming out of the portal with his hands covering his eyes.

Caitlin got off Barry's body with a jump and fell next to him on the couch, right when Cynthia exited the portal.

"Wow, Cisco was right. I _have_ missed a lot," she grinned, watching Caitlin try to rub some lipstick marks off Barry's jaw.

"Do you ever knock?" Caitlin muttered between her teeth, looking at Cisco. Her face then relaxed as she looked at Cynthia. "It's really nice to see you again, Cynthia."

"Hey! I didn't know Ralph's address and no one was picking up, so I tracked your phones," Cisco reasoned in his defense, taking off his Vibe glasses. "Should I have brought a 'Congratulations on the Face Eating' cake or something?"

"That depends. Do we have anything else to celebrate?" Barry asked, alternately pointing at Cisco and Cynthia.

Cynthia hooked her arm around Cisco's. "We still have a lot to talk about," she answered, glancing at him adoringly. "And a lot to figure out. All we know is that we suck at not being together."

"The heart wants what the heart wants," Cisco recited, wrapping an arm around Cynthia's shoulders and looking down at her. "As John Travolta told Olivia Newton-John, you're the one that I want. Ha!" he finished, winking at his costumed friends.

Barry exchanged a quick look with Caitlin, both forming smirks of complicity. "Well, things definitely worked out for all of us tonight," he stated, happily. "That calls for a toast."

Caitlin got off her seat and pointed at the bar. "Who wants to see some bottle juggling?" she offered.

Cisco and Cynthia hollered approval, barely separating from each other as they went to take the seats in front of the bar.

Barry sneakily hugged Caitlin from behind, resting his chin on her shoulder. "Can I expect a private show at some point?" he friskily whispered to her ear.

Caitlin leaned her head back, snuggling up against him. "If you grab some things from the store so I can work here, I'll think about it," she promised, cheekily.

He turned her to him and lifted his hand, so they could high five. She leaned up to give him a short peck, but Barry made it a languid one. "Go," she prompted, against his lips, unable to push him away.

"I'm going, I'm going," he groaned, stepping back, but keeping one of her hands against this chest. "I'll also pick up some things to cook you breakfast tomorrow."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah. And lunch, and dinner…"

Caitlin kissed his cheek. "I'm sure we can take shifts… to spoil each other."

"Is that a yes?"

"Yes."

Their eyes locked tenderly, and Caitlin seemed to momentarily forget that she had asked him to do something. Barry would have liked to explain to her that fifteen seconds, the fifteen seconds that would take him to run to the store, would go slower to him and he would spend each one of them aching to come back to her, but he didn't want to get that melodramatic on their first night together. Maybe she knew it already because, despite the obvious fears and the secrets, they both knew what was going on with the other all the time. If it wasn't for that understanding, they wouldn't be together now. If it wasn't for that understanding, she would had never put up with him that whole time nor want him just the way he was.

Slowly letting go of her hand and giving his happy friends one last look, he ran out the house.


End file.
